HIRAM, Ohio – The first few minutes of Saturday's basketball game at Hiram College were ones the Kenyon College Lords would soon like to forget. The Lords couldn't get their motor started and found themselves trailing by 20 points just seven minutes into the game, which they ultimately lost, 92-74.
 
It took nearly four minutes for the Lords to score their first field goal, a Brien Comey layup assisted by Tim Connolly. It then took another four minutes for their next basket, which came from Connolly. By then, Kenyon was trailing, 27-9 with 12:37 still left on the first-half clock.
 
The Lords (7-10, 4-6 NCAC) were unable to find a way to consistently penetrate the Terriers' full-court pressure, which they used throughout most of the first half. That defense forced 12 Kenyon turnovers in the first 20 minutes. The limited opportunities kept Kenyon from mounting any rallies in the half and allowed Hiram (12-5, 6-4 NCAC) to take a 52-25 lead into the break.
 
The Kenyon men didn't shut things down, however. They played a more solid game in the second half, outscoring the Terriers, 49-40. After trailing by as many as 33 points, the Lords trimmed that margin down to 13 points (83-70) with 3:24 left in the contest. The last-ditch effort was countered by a Terriers' 6-0 run that pushed the lead back out to 19 and all but guaranteed Hiram the victory.
 
The Terriers shot 52.5 percent (21-of-40) in the first half and finished the game at 50.7 percent (38-of-75). The Lords shot 44.0 percent (26-of-59) for the game.
 
Connolly finished with a game-high 19 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three-point range. Teammate and freshman Matt Shifrin went 7-of-8 from the field to score a season-high 17 points.
 
The Lords ended up using their entire bench and ten different players scored. Sophomore Bennett Grigull scored nine points, Comey finished with eight, Ethan Shapiro chipped in with seven and both Alex Laub and Alexander Powell scored five.
 
Comey and Shapiro each pulled down eight rebounds in what was an evenly-matched battle on the glass.
 
Hiram also had ten players log points. Paul Ortiz and Jeremiah Thomas led the way with 16 points apiece. Kevin Jones added a game-high nine rebounds.
 
The Lords will look to turn their fortunes around on Wednesday when they host Oberlin College. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.